The scorching temperatures and an excessive heat warning didn’t keep the large crowd away from Fire Prevention Night sponsored by General Fire & Safety and Jeremiah Weed Saturday evening at Eagle Raceway. Those who braved the sun and heat were treated to a great series of races put on by dedicated racers who also braved the same conditions.

All preliminary events were run without serious incidents.

Joey Danley’s 14 and the 5 of Marty Steinbach spun to the infield on the initial start of the NAPA IMCA Sport Modified A Feature, causing a complete restart. Roger Harpster’s 88, the 33D of Kyle Driskell, Shelly Andersen in the 5V and Denny Berghahn Jr.’s 6 were the top four of the first official lap. Driskell passed Harpster on lap 2 for the lead and Todd Sanford moved into fourth the next time around. Lap 4 saw a caution for debris and Harpster headed to the pits. That made the top 4 Driskell, Berghahn Jr., Sanford and Andersen. Andersen was passed on the restart lap by the 96 of Gary Saathoff. One of the implement tires in turn 2 was hit on lap 5, and the yellow lights were lit. Kyle Prauner’s 5K came to a halt in turn four on lap 6. Berghahn Jr. went extremely high on lap 8, allowing both Sanford and Saathoff to move up a position. The next lap saw Driskell get very loose on the back stretch, but he was saved when Matt Boucher’s 5B and the 18 of Laini Schwartz stopped in turn 4. Sanford passed Driskell on the restart lap for the lead and Saathoff moved up to third. Saathoff advanced another position the next lap and Benji Legg got the 25B into fourth. Driskell again took second on the next circuit and Legg also passed Saathoff to grab third. The running order remained unchanged to the checkers with Sanford winning, Driskell second, Legg third and Saathoff in fourth.

“This was our second win this year, and it was dedicated to Joni Harms and Boone Spering who passed away recently” Sanford said. He continued by relating “I want to thank the Floodman family for giving me the chance to drive their car. Also, I want to say thanks to my crew. Without Ron Jr., Conner, Troy, TJ, Kyle and Randy giving me a great race car every week we wouldn’t be out here”. Todd’s sponsors include Ink Machine, Signs Now, Uprise, Frontier Group, Ron Fox & Sons, Cattle Company, Vermeer, Geek to the Rescue, Alltronix, Butthead Express, B & B Seamless Gutters, Production Car Care Products and R.A.P.

The first lap of the Valentino’s IMCA Hobby Stock A saw Damon Richards in the 68 out front with Garrett Bolander’s 98X, the 18 of Tim LaPointe and David Carter’s 2C rounding out the top 4. Bolander moved past Richards on lap 3 for the lead and Chad Fegley made a huge leap all of the way into second in the 13F. Carter also passed Richards who suffered a flat right rear, causing a caution. It took Fegley only 2 laps to pass Bolander for the lead. RJ Macku moved the 1R past Carter on lap 6 and Macku advanced another position the next time around before getting around Bolander on the next circuit. Lap 11 saw the right rear tire leave the 21 of Derick Noonan and the yellow lights were again turned on. After the restart and to the checkers Fegley and Macku put on a fierce battle before Fegley’s racer suffered a flat tire near the end of the race. Fegley managed to hold on for second, but Macku came home first. Bolander finished in third and Carter rounded out the top 4.

“This was definitely a hot night, but everything ran great after getting claimed last week” Macku stated. He continued by relating “I started 6th row outside, and knew it was going to be tough moving up. I didn’t really think I could catch Chad, but he got unlucky with that flat”. He concluded the interview by saying “I want to thank everyone who comes out every week and cheers me on. And I can’t thank the friends who help me with the race car enough”. RJ’s sponsors include Big Johnson Race Chassis, The Shop Inc, FRE Racing Engines, Chris High Painting and Red Line Grafix.

Next up was the Rev Honey IMCA Modified Feature. Chad Andersen’s 8C, the 8A of Dustin Andersen, Scott Bivens’ S56 and Rik Gropp’s V45 were the first four back to the flag stand on lap 1. Dustin passed his brother on lap 2 and Gropp got past Bivens also. Gropp and Bivens both passed Chad the next time around as Dylan Smith moved the 95 into fourth. Lacey Tuttle’s Z00 stopped in turns 1 & 2 the next lap with a flat right front tire. Smith used the restart lap to move up to third, taking second the next time around and moving up to first on the next circuit as Johnny Saathoff put the 96J into fourth as Gropp again took second. Jerry Trejo’s 4T spun on lap 8 to bring out a caution. 2 laps after the restart Saathoff moved into third. Chris Alcorn got his #3 into fourth the next lap. Andrew Hille’s 31 spun in turn 4 two laps later and the yellow lights came on again. Saathoff moved up to second on the restart and Alcorn moved to third the next lap. With 7 to go Justin Wulf’s 86 stopped in turns 3 & 4. 2 laps after the restart the caution flag was displayed for the final time in the race for debris from Josh Most’s 92. Saathoff and Alcorn moved to first and second on the restart. Smith suffered a flat left rear tire shortly after that and headed to the pits. At the checkers it was Saathoff, Alcorn, Gropp and Dustin Andersen.

“We definitely had a lot of luck tonight” Saathoff said. “The KX96, Jet Mod car was only good enough for second tonight. Dylan would definitely have won if not for the flat tire. It would have been a great race at least, but I don’t think we had enough for him” he continued. He finished the interview by stating “We’ve been lucky at Eagle this year for sure, but we couldn’t do it without the great people who sponsor us. We love the fans here, and there’s no better place to race than Eagle. Hats off to Roger for what he does with this track”.
Johnny’s sponsors include Penner Insurance, Jet Racing, Northeast Auto, Gibbs Place, the Corner Tavern and 96KX.

James Snelling’s 70 led the first lap of the Exhaust Pros IMCA Sport Compact A Main followed by the 70D of David Knoell, Jesse Osmon in the 4A and the 69J of Fred Johnson. Ole Olsen moved the 23 into fourth on lap 3 but Barry Kinnersley’s 00 stopped in turns 1 & 2. Knoell moved into first and Olsen took fourth on lap 4. Osmon also passed Snelling the next lap as did Olsen and Johnson. Osmon fell to fourth on lap 12. Lap 14 saw Kenny Roberts get the #69 into third and Johnson held fourth. At the end it was Knoell, Olsen, Roberts and Johnson.
Knoell could not be located for an interview.

The Budweiser 360 Sprint Cars were the final contest of the evening. Mike Boston’s 51, the 35 of Trevor Grossenbacher, Stu Snyder in the 23S and the 76 of Jay Russell led the field on lap 1. Jason Danley moved his #82 into fourth on lap 2 and passed Snyder for third on lap 11. Grossenbacher passed Boston for the lead on lap 17. The first caution of the race came on lap 21 when the 12 of Tyler Drueke slowed in turn 1 but kept going. Jeff Osborn’s 0 stopped on the front stretch with 2 to go for the final caution of the evening. Grossenbacher held off Boston for the win with Danley third and Snyder fourth.

This was Trevor’s first win on the season. “It’s about time that nothing happened to us!” he said. “We’ve been so close the last 3 weeks, and it’s good to finally get the win. We’re not out of the points race yet; we just need to keep digging and get it done” he continued. He concluded the interview by relating “I want to thank my crew for all that they do. Tyler, Scott, Dan, Scooter, Travis and of course my dad give me the car to win every week”. Trevor’s sponsors include Stop ‘N Shop, GMS Wings, Agees Automotive, The Beverage Connection, Pro Tint, Central Body Shop and J & M Technologies.

Next Saturday at “America’s Home Track” Olston’s Auto Recyclers presents Kids Night, and the annual Bike Giveaway. There will be over 300 bicycles that were donated by drivers, crews, fans and local businesses given away to children during intermission. All other kids will receive a prize! Happy D Klown will be on site from 5 until 8. There will be a kids and adults Happy Hour from 6-7, with face painting from 5 to 7. Front gates open at 5:00. Adult admission is $10, and both youths 6-12 and children 5 and under are free. Pit gates open at 4 P.M. with pit admission being $20. Racing will begin at 6:30 featuring the Budweiser 360 Sprints, the Rev Honey IMCA Modifieds, the NAPA IMCA Sport Modifieds, the Valentino’s IMCA Hobby Stocks and the Exhaust Pros IMCA Sport Compacts competing.